Skye Camanachd have made a submission to the Camanachd Association board members concerning the recent announcement regarding league reconstructure which they hope will be considered at the Association’s Annual General Meeting next month.

The Islanders are also in the process of copying the submission, which requests a change of heart on the league reconstruction plans, to gauge support.

The submission reads as follows;

Proposal to create a National Division 1

We at Skye Camanachd would like to formally issue our opposition to the plan — approved by board members and presented to the association at a general meeting in Fort William on the 1st February — to create a national first division, and to reduce the premier league from ten to eight teams.

It was a move which took us by surprise as a club — particularly as the adopted league model was not contained in any of the consultative papers previously distributed to clubs. Skye's preference had always been for a retention - by and large - of the status quo. It is a model which, generally, has served shinty pretty well in recent years, as the competition levels seem to have been of a consistently good standard throughout the leagues.

We have concerns over the direction of the north first division, which has lost teams in recent years. It should be noted, however, that this trend has mostly been due to the successes of some clubs, and the evidence suggests clubs such as Kinlochshiel and Lovat have found the competition in north division one to have been of a standard which left them well equipped for life in the premier league.

Previously we suggested to the association that north one should, if possible, contain at least 8 teams, and that promotion of teams from division two should automatically follow for league winners. We accept this can also have difficulties, so a seven team league or, even if only for a year, a six team league, is still preferable to the creation of a second tier national division. It is a move which has been tried, and abandoned, previously.

We remain supportive — as we have been since the idea was first mooted in the 1990s - of a national premier league. We feel it is a goal for every club in Scotland to work towards, and it supports a high standard of shinty, which in turn brings out the full commitment of those involved. It's extension to ten teams has been a success. Unfortunately, our experience tells us that this was simply not the case for a second national tier.

When tried previously Skye found themselves travelling, in quick succession, for games to Bute, Glasgow, Tighnabruaich, Dalmally and Ballachulish. The effect, unsurprisingly, was that the team struggled, morale slipped and players and coaches were lost to the game. The travelling, cost, and time commitments needed to sustain a club in this competition - which was a second tier and not an elite league - was hard to justify. And in fact while the intention was to create a better standard of shinty, we felt the level was actually poorer. Invariably Skye travelled to away games with a far from full strength team, while the same was often true of those coming to play us in Portree.

We would like to make a formal proposal, to go before the Association's AGM, that the plan to adopt a national first division for the 2014 season be withdrawn, and the current league model - which includes a ten team premiership with its existing system of promotion and relegation — be retained.